IDS Rapid Response Briefings

IDS Rapid Response Briefings are published by the Institute of Development Studies and aim to provide high level analysis of rapidly emerging and unexpected global events, and their impact on global development policy and practice.

Over the past 15 years, internet pornography has become the predominant channel through which young people learn about sex, not just in the developed world, but increasingly in developing countries too. In many developing countries, traditional gatekeepers of sex education, such as governments, religious leaders and parents, still attempt to keep sexuality out of the public sphere. More details

As a body of 28 member states and with a combined GDP of close to US$20tn, greater than that of the US, the actions of the European Union (EU) have the potential to impact heavily – either negatively or positively – on international development cooperation. More details

Africa has the youngest population in the world, with 200 million people aged between 15 and 24, a figure projected to double by 2045. As young people look to enter the workforce in Africa many are likely to face unemployment or underemployment, suffering from unsafe, insecure, part-time, poorly paid work. More details

Some people do not want to use condoms – because they want to conceive or they perceive that they are a barrier to intimacy. New medication to prevent HIV, known as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), could provide protection where condoms are not used. More details

Gun-related violence has far-reaching adverse impacts on all levels of society. In addition to murder and injury, gun violence can exacerbate cycles of highly localised urban poverty, inequality and vulnerability. More details

In recent years, violent insurgency has gripped the margins of Kenya, Mali and Nigeria. Militant Islamist groups have attacked civilian populations, state security personnel and political-administrative officials, spreading insecurity across large areas and exploiting the mistrust between societies at the margins and central authorities. More details

Conflict-related sexual violence remains pervasive across the globe, and its widespread use has been reported in Rwanda, Liberia, Northern Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, Iraq, Libya and Syria. More details

In the aftermath of regime ruptures in the Arab world and with the political ascendancy of Islamist groups, there has been a mass exodus of citizens belonging to religious minorities from the region. More details

This briefing considers the impact of the diplomatic rift between Egypt and Ethiopia in the Nile Basin on broader development in the region and the possible diplomatic and developmental scenarios that could emerge as construction of the GERD dam progresses. More details

A new development bank to be created by the 'Rising Powers' of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) is intended to promote greater cooperation between developing countries, and address what is seen by many as a history of misguidance and underinvestment by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). More details

Over two thirds of all human infectious diseases have their origins in animals. The rate at which these zoonotic diseases have appeared in people has increased over the past 40 years, with at least 43 newly identified outbreaks since 2004. More details